


Haleoween

by redhoodedwolf



Series: Sterek Week '15 [7]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Derek makes costumes, Derek owns a halloween store, Dumb boys are dumb, Fluuuuufffff, Halloween, M/M, POV Derek Hale, Sterek Week, Stiles is a student, all hallow's eve, derek is still a werewolf, hale fire still happened, happy ending of course, lil bit of angst as always
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-30
Updated: 2015-10-30
Packaged: 2018-04-28 23:49:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5109983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redhoodedwolf/pseuds/redhoodedwolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"So what are you looking to get?" he inquired.<br/>"Alright, well, the theme I'm going for is Badass Little Red Riding Hood."<br/>Derek arched an eyebrow, not judgingly, but curiously. "Interesting. Skirt and all?"<br/>Stiles' cheeks flushed at the joke. "Pfft, nah, not for this one." Derek's face flushed at that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Haleoween

**Author's Note:**

> Sterek Week Day 7: All Hallow's Eve  
> Have a good Halloween everyone!!

            Derek opened up _Haleoween_ three years ago coinciding with the fall season. It started out as a little shop positioned between a shoe store and a craft store. When it first opened, many people speculated over whether or not the place would stay in business as soon as the holiday season was over. No one was even sure if the shop was open year round. But sure enough, on November 1st, the doors were still unlocked and Derek sat at the till, waiting.

            Haleoween didn't have the biggest inventory. There were no 15ft tall Frankenstein's Monster inflatables, or creepy lifelike skeletons that cackled and shook when a person walked by it. A lot of the store was costumes, which was the aspect of Halloween that Derek most enjoyed.

            So when a month went by and the country was flooded with Christmas, people were shocked to see Haleoween still up and running. Derek wasn't that surprised. Halloween stores that were open all year round were rare, so it was a commodity to have one nearby. Derek was stationed only about an hour out of San Francisco and Sacramento, so he garnered many patrons from the cities as well.

            A large draw that brought people in was that Derek advertized custom-made costumes. His store still sold all of the same ones most stores did, though his collection was vast and always changing. But if you could afford it, Derek would hand-sew costumes for customers, all year round. Many people from the cities would come down just to order one, for occasions all year round. During the summer, he got many cosplayers invading his store to prepare for ComicCon.

            It wasn't long before Derek had struck up a deal with the craft store to get discounted materials, and the shoe store by promoting their shoes to match certain costumes.

            Within a year, business was booming. Derek had to hire outside help to run the shop while he kept up with the custom orders. _Especially_ once fall had come back around again. As soon as the first leaf changed color, Derek had four orders for costumes, people wanting to get an early start on planning.

            Derek loved Haleoween. He liked meeting other Halloween enthusiasts, his employees weren't all bad, and he loved creating costumes for people. It was a tough job, but the rewards far outweighed the effort.

            By the third year in business, Derek was thinking of expanding his shop into one of the nearby cities. He had no plans finalized yet, but he'd been looking into a few open places. He dreamed of having enough space to just do all of his costuming at the store, in his own little section, rather than doing all of that work at home. Often times he had people come up to him and ask if he could show them how they made this or that, or if they could watch him make their costume, and he always felt terrible when he had to turn them down. If he had his own workstation on location, he could actually say yes for once.

            By moving, he'd miss Beacon Hills and the friendships he'd built with the two stores he was sandwiched in between, but it was time for him to break out on his own. First, though, he had to get through this Halloween.

*

            "Are you sure you want to spend _that much_ on a _costume_?" Derek overheard a voice say, snapping to attention when he heard the word 'costume'. It was a Tuesday afternoon and Derek was manning the store alone. That morning, a mother had come to pick up the costume she'd ordered for her son, and Derek wanted to be there to answer any questions she might have had. The woman's thankful grin had boosted his mood, and he was still riding that high. Or, he was, before he heard the voice. He frowned, actively listening now to the conversation.

            He heard another voice respond. They scoffed and replied, "It's not just going to be a costume, Scotty. It's going to be _the_ costume. Ever since this place opened, I've been saving up money to get a custom made one. I'm not going to go to my last college Halloween party looking like some dumb freshman. Again. I need some _action_ , man! And this costume is gonna help me get some."

            Derek could hear the pair moving closer towards the store, and he made himself appear as though he hadn't been listening in on their private conversation. Not that they would know that or even assume, seeing as a normal human wouldn't be able to have heard them at all. But a normal human Derek was not.

            The door swung open, letting in a breath of brisk fall air. Derek let it fill his lungs, and with it the scent of the two voices. One was a tangy scent mixed with the smell of animals, mostly cats. The other was sweet and sugary with a hint of anxiety.

            The pair appeared to be two young men, assumedly college age, going by the one's earlier statement. One of the men had shaggy brown hair and an uneven jaw, while the other had short cropped lighter brown hair and a smattering of similarly colored moles across his face. The second man spotted Derek sitting at the till and made a b-line for him. A wide grin stretched across his face.

            "Hey, are you Derek Hale?" he asked.

            Derek nodded and stuck out his hand for a shake, which the guy enthusiastically took. Before Derek could open his mouth, the man was talking once more. "Oh man. I have admired your costume work ever since you opened this place! You make our friend Lydia's every year and I'm always super jealous." Derek recognized the name, but he didn't get a chance to think of the particular costumes in question before the man soldiered on. "So I've been saving up and I am officially wealthy enough to afford one costume by you. Do you still have any open spots or enough time before Halloween? That's my deadline, the 31st."

            Derek still didn't have a name for this man, but he regarded him otherwise. He seemed excited to be there to have this costume made for him. And though it _was_ cutting it kind of close, Halloween only being 3 weeks away, plus he had two other costumes to finish, there was something about this man that Derek didn't want to turn away. Trusting his instincts hadn't always steered him right (see: the death of his entire family), but Derek was willing to chance it just once.

            He gave the man a small smile. "You're in luck. I just finished up a costume this morning, so my load has lightened enough to make something for you."

            The man cheered and shared a grin with the other man at his side. Derek had almost forgotten he was even there. "Thanks, man, I appreciate this so much."

            "No problem. Uh, I didn't happen to catch a name..?"

            The man's face fell and he stunk of shame. "Dude, I'm so rude! I'm Stiles. Stilinski. Oh, and this is my friend Scott. He's just here for moral support."

            Derek tipped his head at Scott before looking back at Stiles. "It's alright, 'happens. So what are you looking to get?" he inquired, pulling out his phone and loading up a new note tab to jot down details on. He typed Stiles' name at the top and then looked back up at the man.

            "Alright, well, the theme I'm going for is Badass Little Red Riding Hood."

            Derek arched an eyebrow, not judgingly, but curiously. "Interesting. Skirt and all?"

            Stiles' cheeks flushed at the joke. "Pfft, nah, not for this one." Derek's face flushed at that.

            Scott cleared his throat and gestured to the aisles behind them. "I'm just gonna look while you talk," he told Stiles before shuffling away.

            "Anyway," Stiles continued, catching Derek's attention once more. "I was thinking like a red hood, but maybe no cape, and instead it's a hoodie? But like an _awesome_ hoodie. Black and red, so I can blend with the night, but mostly red. Lots of pockets, and some sort of belt with a clip attachment for a weapon. I think a sword would be cool to attach to it. Or would guns be cooler? You're the costume guy, what do you think?"

            Derek nearly wasn't able to type with how fast Stiles was talking, and almost missed the question entirely. He thought about the Argents and their favorite hunting weapons. "I think crossbow. Maybe a crossbow gun."

            Stiles' eyes widened like that had never occurred to him. "Yes. Oh my god, yes, you are the master."

            Derek snorted, feeling his cheeks pinking again. He had to clear he throat before speaking. "I've got a pretty good mental picture of what I'm thinking. I'll draw out some sketches for you within the next couple of days so we have time to make the changes where needed. Is it best to contact you over email?"

            "Either that or text-- here, I'll jot it down for you." Derek passed over his phone and watched as Stiles' skinny fingers flew over the screen before handing it back.

            "Cool. Alright, the last thing I need from you if you have it are your measurements?"

            This was the question Derek always dreaded. People usually didn't remember that to custom make a costume, he needed to customize it to each individual person. He couldn't just create a one-size-fits-all costume and expect them to be happy with it. So many came in without measurements, and they made Derek feel like a tailor as he lead them to a dressing room so he could have a space to measure what he needed. Often times this gave the customers the opportunity to flirt, and Derek didn't really enjoy that.

            To Derek's shock, Stiles rifled around in his pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper and passed it over. Seeing the surprised look on his face, Stiles chuckled. "My dad got married a year or so ago, and I had to get a suit. My size hasn't changed since then so these should still work."

            Derek flipped open the folded sheet and noted down the numbers scribbled on it. He nodded and then looked back up at Stiles. "Thanks, this will really help when I start to sketch."

            Stiles' smile was infectious. It brightened his face and made his eyes spark with life. "Awesome. And hey, thanks again, man. I know this time of the year especially must be insane. I would have come in last month, but I was still settling in with school and wanted to get those last couple dollars into my bank account before getting my hopes up."

            "It's really no problem," Derek insisted. "So you're at the university?"

            "BHU, senior," Stiles clarified.

            "What's your major?"

            "Linguistics. My emphasis is on Polish, since I was brought up with it, but I've learned a good chunk of different languages from it too."

            "That's pretty interesting," Derek commented sincerely. He knew multiple languages himself, though probably not as fluently as Stiles. "Do you want to be a translator? Teacher?"

            Stiles shrugged. "Maybe a little bit of both? Haven't decided yet."

            "You still got a bit of time."

            Stiles gave him a smile. "Yeah, a little."

            An easy silence passed between them as they smiled at each other. The moment was broken by Scott who cleared his throat behind Stiles and caused the younger man to jump, shocked. He clutched at his chest. "Jesus, Scott, don't do that!"

            Scott just gave him a look. "You all finished?"

            "Uh..." Stiles looked to Derek and he nodded. "Yep, all good here. I'll be looking forward to seeing what you come up with, Derek. And feel free to shoot me a text if you have any questions, I'll answer those faster than emails."

            "Will do," Derek promised, clutching his phone a little too tightly.

            Stiles gave him another eye-shining smile. "Talk to you later, then."

            "Yep," Derek replied dumbly as Scott dragged Stiles out.

            "Dude, you said it would take two minutes. Did you have to flirt while I'm on a time-sensitive schedule?"

            Derek imagined Stiles' face flushing like his was. "Shut up, it wasn't flirting. We were just doing small talk, like everyone does. Lay off, okay?"

            Derek lost their voices as a trio of kids walked in belatedly followed by their parents. Derek gave them a small smile in greeting, but his thoughts were still on Stiles. He glanced down at his phone and the notes he'd taken. An image was starting to form in his head, so he grabbed for his sketchbook that he'd stashed under the counter and got to drawing.

*

                        _So there's a couple options when it comes to the actual hoodie._

_and those are?_

                        _It could be one that zips down the middle or one side crosses over the other and zips more on the side._

_dude. duuuude. do the second one. i always thought i'd look awesome in one of those_

_Alright._

_so what have you been up to today?_

            Derek was surprised at the sudden shift in conversation, mostly because he'd thought the conversation was over. But at the speed Stiles had replied after he'd sent his last text, it was almost as if Stiles wanted to be sure that Derek saw the next text.

                        _Costuming. I was working on your friend Lydia's earlier but then decided to take a break and sketch some things for yours._

            Derek hesitated before adding:

                        _And you?_

            The response was instantaneous.

_Homework, ugh. senior year in high school wasn't this much, why does college have to be this way?_

_I wouldn't know._

_You never want to college for design? SO YOUR TALENT IS JUST NATURAL IM SO ANGRY_

_Chill._

_NO_

_I almost went, but then some family stuff happened. and I realized I could do what I wanted without the degree, so here I am now_

_still jealous_

_Hey, not all of us can know several languages._

_touché ;)_

            Derek should not be blushing because of a winky face, absolutely not. He was a werewolf. He's more than a man, such small things should not affect him. And yet...

_when do you think you'll have some sketches for me to oggle?? :P_

_Probably tomorrow. I've got the basic costume down it's just up to adding details at this point_

_!!!!!!_

_that means i'm super excited btw_

_Got it._

            True to his word, by the next morning, Derek was sending Stiles an email with the scanned sketches attached. _Hope you like it, please let me know what you want to change._

            Within the hour, he'd received a text from Stiles containing numerous exclamation points and different happy smiley faces.

                        _So I take it you like the design?_

_I'm ENRAPTURED by the design DEREK HOLY GOD if you can make this I will owe you my first born_

_I take cash or credit only._

_Haha, hilarious._

_;)_

_shut up_

*

            Derek had been neglecting Stiles' costume. This was mostly because he wanted to get the two others he had done before doing Stiles' because all he could think about recently was that younger man and how Derek was being tasked to dress him.

            All he wanted to do was this for Stiles, but he knew these other obligations were just as important. And because of this neglect, he hadn't texted Stiles any updates for a week. Sure, they texted usually daily about random things, but Derek knew Stiles was interested to see what Derek had done so far. And it wouldn't be as impressive as he thought it would be.

            On October 15th, he finally finished Lydia Martin's costume and called her to come pick it up. Forgetting the woman was Stiles' friend, Derek didn't think about possibly seeing him. But rather than Lydia waltzing into his shop, it was Stiles. He greeted Derek with a large smile. "Hey!"

            "Stiles," Derek said, surprised. "How-- what are you doing here?"

            Stiles appeared to hesitate and Derek could detect a hint of sadness coming off of him. "What, you're not happy to see me?" the younger man weakly joked.

            "Of course I am," Derek was quick to respond, and the sour note in Stiles' scent dissipated. "I'm just surprised."

            "Lydia requested me to come pick up her costume for her and bring you the check." Stiles stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled out a single check and held it out to Derek. Getting a peek of the numbers on it himself, Stiles' eyes widened and his jaw dropped. "She's paying you a thousand dollars?!"

            Derek winced at his high pitched tone. A couple perusing costumes started muttering about rude customers a few rows down, and Derek hoped Stiles couldn't hear them.

            "Derek..." Derek's gaze snapped back to Stiles, and the man looked devastated. "I don't think I can afford this..."

            Derek's eyes widened. "Stiles, yours isn't going to be even half as expensive as Lydia's. Hers was not only much more complicated and intricate, but the material used was more expensive. And she always overpays, and I let her. It's useless to argue down a price when someone wants to pay more, especially when it comes to the Martins. I wouldn't charge you this much," Derek waved the check.

            Stiles slumped in relief. "Oh thank god. I felt so bad, dude. And after all the work you've probably put into it already, that wouldn't be fair to you either."

            Now was Derek's turn to feel guilty. He was barely started on Stiles'. He _had_ started sewing together the gloves, which was a tricky process, but that was it. The costume wasn't complex, it just required attention. Attention Derek hadn't wanted to spend on it until he could devote his _whole_ of attention to it.

            He turned and reached for the coat rack behind the counter where he had hung up Lydia's costume hidden safely in a garment bag. He passed it over the counter, and Stiles took it, though he looked confused. "You okay?" he inquired.

            "Yeah," Derek nodded, giving Stiles the best smile he could muster. "I've only got your costume left to do, so I don't have any worries that it won't be done in time for your last college Halloween party."

            Stiles tilted his head to the side, eyes narrowing slightly. "I told you about the party?" Derek froze and winced. Oops. Damn werewolf hearing. Stiles didn't notice, though, and just waved his hand. "I must have. But that's great, dude, I'm totally psyched. And feel free to send me some pictures of the process, I'd love to see it come to life." His eyes lit up.

            Derek couldn't say no. "Sure, of course."

            Stiles' cheeks flushed and Derek could smell something like happiness and arousal mixed together. "Thanks. Well, I've got to run. But it was great to see you."

            "You too," Derek breathed, taking in more of that delicious scent. This attraction he had towards Stiles was getting a little bit out of hand.

            "See you soon?" Stiles asked hopefully.

            Derek nodded. "Yep."

            Once Stiles was gone, Derek had to shake himself out of the stupor the younger man had put him in. He had a shop to run, right.

            As if summoned, the four o'clock after school rush joined the lone couple in the store, and Derek was too preoccupied to think about Stiles. Well, mostly.

*

                        _Why Red Riding Hood?_

_I've always liked the fairy tale, even as a kid. My mom used to love that one. she would call me her little red fox_

_Do you miss her?_

_Yeah. around this time of year especially. she died in the spring but her birthday was in the fall, and she loved everything to do with this season_

_what are your Halloween plans? family?_

_Just me_

_that's rough, buddy_

_Did you just quote Avatar at me?_

_I DID OMG YOU KNOW AVATAR AUTOMATICALLY MY NEW BFF_

_okay maybe not bff cause that's Scott forever_

_more like a bf_

_NOT LIKE BOYFRIEND SHIT LIKE BEST FRIEND_

_im just gonna go die now_

_If you die you won't be able to wear this awesome costume I'm making for you._

_true. alright I'll live with it_

_you still didn't answer my question though. plans?_

_I'll be handing out candy to trickortreaters_

_that's it? boooooooooring_

_I like to see the costumes, okay?_

_okay that's dope I'll admit. Plus you can't beat free candy_

_do you have a costume?_

_I have one that I'm kind of known for in my neighborhood that I wear every year._

_and that is???_

_Werewolf_

_DUDE THAT'S SO GENERIC IM DISAPPOINTED_

_What were you expecting?_

_IDK SOMETHING HUGE_

_A werewolf is something I can easily pull off. And after making costumes for everyone else, it's difficult to find time to make one for myself_

_sucks_

_Nah. It's pretty natural for me. It's the norm._

_not a bad norm to have, I guess._

_I'm glad you agree._

_maybe you could show me yours? I wanna see how badass you make yourself_

_we could get ready for the night together, you can dress me how you think I should be and I can help you "wolf out"_

Derek hesitated, not responding to Stiles' texts for several minutes before finally responding a copout: _Maybe_.

            Stiles didn't say anything after that. Derek was not disappointed, he wasn't.

*

            Ten days after Stiles picked up Lydia's costume, Derek ran into him at the grocery store.

            Stiles was staring at some apples as if they knew the answers to all of his problems, and Derek snorted at the picture he made. Stiles' head snapped up and whipped over to look in his direction. His narrowed eyes widened and he grinned when he spotted Derek.

            Stiles maneuvered his cart around, abandoning the apples, and headed over to Derek who was standing by the vegetables. "Hey! Funny seeing you here. I thought I may never see you leave that store of yours."

            Derek rolled his eyes. "Everyone has to eat, Stiles. Besides, it's only a coincidence that the two times you came in I was there. I'm usually only at the shop a couple days a week for a few hours. I do the costuming at home."

            "Huh," Stiles murmured, surprised. "Well, once is an incident and twice is a coincidence, as they say. I'll believe you, for now."

            Derek chuckled and ducked his head.

            Stiles grinned at him and blurted, almost without realizing it, it seemed, "Do you want to have dinner with me?"

            Derek blinked. "What?"

            "Ah..." Stiles' mouth dropped open and his pink plush lips looked bitten. Derek wanted to bite them. _No_ , focus. "Well, it's like you said. Everyone has to eat. And since we're both here, buying food, it probably means we're both hungry, right? So we should eat together! Like friends do!"

            "Right." Friends. Of course. Derek rubbed at the bridge of his nose. But Stiles had such a hopeful expression on his face, as usual. Derek couldn't turn him away. "Sure. I was going to make lasagna for dinner if you'd like to join me?"

            "At your house?"

            "Apartment," Derek corrected. "Yeah. Unless you'd rather get dinner elsewhere, then--"

            "No!" Stiles practically shouted. The few people around them stopped to stare and Stiles winced. Derek could feel an embarrassed blush creeping up his neck. "I mean, your place is fine. Yeah. I mean, I have to drop the groceries off at home first, and it's a little early for dinner now anyways, so I could meet you at yours at maybe 6?"

            "Yeah, sounds good," Derek spoke, automatically. "I'll text you my address."

            "Cool. Yeah. And you can show me how well my costume is coming along! I know you've been holding out on pictures but I'm so curious dude."

            Derek would have to do some speed-sewing once he got home to finish the hoodie to the point at least for Stiles to try on, but he could probably make it. "Sounds good," Derek repeated, before realizing he'd just said that. "I mean, I'm anxious to see if you like what I've done."

            Stiles gave him a fond smile and it ignited his insides. "I'm sure I'll be over the moon about it. No werewolf pun intended," Stiles added with a chuckle.

            Derek was about to snarl as to how in the world Stiles knew he was a werewolf before he remembered their text conversation from a few days ago. He chuckled instead, but it probably wasn't as happy sounding as he intended, hackles raised. "I believe you," he spoke belatedly.

            "Okay, so. See you soon?"

            "Yep."

            Stiles shuffled away awkwardly at that, and Derek resisted the urge to slam his head into the box of pumpkins. He quickly grabbed everything he would need to make lasagna and then left. His other groceries could wait. He needed as much extra time as he could get to make sure Stiles was impressed with what Derek had made. There was only 6 days left until Halloween, until Stiles' deadline. He needed to be fast.

*

            Dinner with Stiles was not the disaster Derek had feared it would be.

            Once he'd gotten home from the store, Derek had sent Stiles his address. Promptly at 6, there was a knock on his door, and Derek sprinted to open it. Stiles grinned at him and waved a tray of delicious smelling brownies. "I brought dessert."

            Derek was proud of how his lasagna turned out. He was surprised it was even edible, considering he'd been cooking and sewing at the same time. Every time Stiles took a bite, Derek was convinced he would come to find a slightly melted sewing needle sticking out of the layers of meat and cheese.

            Stiles moaned around his first bite, and Derek had to adjust himself in his pants at the practically orgasmic noise. The image was a little bit ruined when Stiles spoke, mouth full, "This is the best lasagna I've ever tasted," though it sounded more like garbled mush.

            Once they finished dinner, Derek and Stiles broke into the brownies as they settled onto the couch to nurse their distended full stomachs. Derek flipped on some ABC Family Halloween movie to play in the background while they relaxed.

            The chocolate and sugar seemed to have revived Stiles, so not long after, he was demanding to see some of his costume. Derek obliged, stepping into his room and bringing back the almost complete hoodie.

            Stiles' jaw dropped when he saw it. "That's... you made that? It looks like it came from a specialty store or some shit!"

            Stiles held the clothing reverently in his hands, tracing the hood with gentle fingers, and he looked up at Derek pleadingly when he asked, "Can I try it on?"

            Derek gestured to it. "It's your costume, of course."

            Stiles immediately shed his outer layer of plaid (which Derek noticed he seemed to often wear) and slipped the hoodie on overtop of his graphic tee. Derek hadn't added the zipper yet, so Stiles had to hold it together. Derek pointed him towards the bathroom so he could get a proper look in the mirror himself, and Stiles muffled a happy yell at the sight.

            "I look so awesome! And I could totally use this jacket for other things, like... I don't know but it's awesome!"

            Stiles' happy voice reminded Derek of the texts he often received from Stiles that were just a line of exclamation points.

            "I'm almost finished with everything else. I just have to add some more pockets to the pants, and I ordered the crossbow but it hasn't arrived yet. But everything will be done by Saturday."

            Stiles shed the jacket gingerly and handed it back to Derek. "This is amazing, Derek. Thank you."

            Stiles was in his space, closer than Derek had expected him to be. The older man swallowed thickly and licked his lips. Stiles' eyes followed the action. Derek could smell arousal on him. "Like I said, no problem," he choked out. "You are paying me, after all."

            Apparently those were not the correct words to say. Stiles recoiled as if he'd been slapped. "Right." His voice was cold. "I should get going, it's late."

            The dinner was a success, the dessert was a success, the costume was a success, but _Derek_ , the werewolf thought as he laid in bed that night, was not a success.

*

                        _Hey is everything okay?_

            Derek hadn't heard from Stiles in 2 going on 3 days now. It was the 28th and Derek was just a few details away from having a complete costume for Stiles. But more importantly, he wanted to know what had happened. Between them.

            He'd analyzed every second of their conversation over and over for the past two days. The point where everything went downhill was when Derek mentioned that Stiles was paying him. Derek was confused as to why this was the source of Stiles' anger. He _was_ being paid to make this costume, that was just a fact. He'd then thought that maybe Stiles had been cozying up to him to get a fee costume out of it. But he soon dismissed that thought. Stiles wasn't like that.

            Still confused and no closer to understanding the enigma of Stiles, Derek had shot off a text to see if that would solve the problem. It took longer than it usually did for Stiles to respond, but he eventually did, to Derek's relief.

_Yeah, fine. Busy with school. Costume finished?_

                        _Almost. I'll have it done by tomorrow. You can pick it up on Friday at the shop._

_Thanks. See you Friday._

            And that was that.

            Obviously Derek had been seeing something between them that wasn't there. It was really disappointing. Derek was actually starting to like someone, like _Stiles_ , for the first time in years. Ever since he lost Laura, he'd been on his own. He felt like Stiles might be the one to change that. They got along so well.

            Apparently his instincts were wrong yet again.

                        _Looking forward to it._

            He hoped that hurt.

*

            Friday came too fast and too slow for Derek. He'd gotten to the store early on Friday, to make sure he didn't miss Stiles no matter what time of the day he stopped by. But it was the late afternoon and there was still no sign of him. Was Stiles really that petty to make Derek put in all this effort, just to drop him at the last second?

            This was why he normally had clients pay for materials upfront. He didn't feel the need to do so with Stiles because he thought he was trustworthy. Apparently no--

            The door burst open, carried by the wind, and Stiles made his way directly over to him. He slapped a couple hundreds onto the counter and gave Derek a level look. There was no fondness in that neutral smile he wore. "Hey, I'm here to get my costume."

            Derek's anger left him immediately as soon as Stiles came in. He kept making snap judgments about Stiles that were fueled by his anger. And none of that was fair to either of them.

            "Stiles, can we talk?" Derek asked, defeated. If Stiles wanted to pay for his costume and leave, Derek would let him, but he needed to know what their problem was, if Stiles was willing to give him such information.

            For once, they weren't the only ones in the store. Because it was the day before Halloween, many last-minute shoppers were roaming the sparser aisles, searching for that one last item they needed.  There was another employee standing near Derek at the register, checking out a family of three. Stiles glanced at them before looking back at Derek and his hopeful expression.

            Stiles pursed his lips but nodded. Derek hid his sigh of relief. Setting the money in a safe place, Derek led Stiles over to the Employee's Only door and lead him through it. Technically this lead to the back room where their extra stock was, but often times the hallway was used as their "break room" or place to escape for a few seconds while dealing with annoying customers.

            Stiles' arms were crossed against his chest and he looked guarded. His scent was indiscernible and it was irritating Derek. "What?" His voice was cold, again.

            "What did I do wrong? Everything was going great, I really thought-- All I said was that you are paying me to make your costume. That's it. Why get so angry?"

            "Because you made it sound like I was just any old customer, okay?" Stiles burst out with. His eyes, Derek realized, sparked with life when he was angry too. "It just reminded me that that's all we are, and that I was being far too pushy."

            "So you left."

            Stiles sighed and ducked his head. He ran a hand through his hair. "So I left," he repeated.

            "I don't think you were being pushy, first of all," Derek responded after a moment. "I liked it. I thought we were friends. I invited, well, _you_ invited, but we ate dinner together in my _home_. I _let_ you come over. If I wanted nothing more than a worker-client relationship with you, then why would I ever allow that?"

            "Well, when you put it like _that_ \--"

            "And secondly, do you think I spend my days texting every person I've made a costume for? No! You are the only person I text regularly, besides my employees. And that's only because they are trying to get out of the mad rush of the season. I talk to you because I _want_ to, Stiles. Because I _like_ talking to you and because I really like _you_. How could you even think--"

            " _Okay!_ " It was Stiles' turn to cut him off. "Okay, I get it. I'm an idiot."

            Derek sighed, shoulders slumping. "We're both idiots. I shouldn't have ruined a perfectly nice moment by talking about money."

            "I shouldn't have assumed you were working me for more money," Stiles apologized.

            Derek's eyebrows flew up. "Did you seriously think that?"

            Stiles flailed. "Only for like half an hour. Before I realized that--" Stiles stepped closer to Derek. "That I _know_ you. And you'd never do that."

            "It's okay. I forgive you. As long as you forgive me for thinking you were only getting close to me to get a free costume."

            Stiles laughed, and the sound was like music to Derek's ears. The younger man fell against Derek as giggles continued to escape him, and Derek snorted at the sight, holding up Stiles with his arms slightly.

            "Forgiven," Stiles promised once he'd stopped laughing.

            "So... wanna go back out there and see your costume?"

            Stiles' eyes lit up once more, shining a brilliant shade of gold, similar to beta yellow. "Yes!"

            Stiles took Derek's arm and dragged him back out the door and over to the counter. He was vibrating with excitement, and Derek could smell it coming off him in waves. Derek was a little nervous, but he passed the costume bag over to Stiles.

            Without delay, Stiles unzipped the bag to get a look at the full thing. His jaw dropped and the smell of happiness flooded the store.

            "This is absolutely _amazing_ , Derek! I can't wait to wear this tomorrow night. God, look at the gloves! The detail! The buttons! And the _hoodie_ , wow look how much difference a zipper can make. The pants are exactly what I dreamed!"

            Derek reached behind the hanger and the clothes to reveal a plastic bag. "This is the crossbow. Don't break it."

            "I won't," Stiles swore.

            "Uh, here's a photo I took of, erm, myself, well my face, well, half of my face. I was messing around with what I thought your face makeup should be to match and I came up with this design." Derek passed over the photo, and Stiles' eyes widened. He grinned.

            "I love it! The claw marks over the eye, that looks so cool!" He looked up at Derek. "You-- can you do it? Help me? Tomorrow before the party?"

            "Of course. You can come over to mine. We can get costumed together, like you said."

            "Yeah." There was an odd tone to Stiles' voice. "Yeah, exactly. I can't wait."

            Derek looked back toward the counter and remembered Stiles' money. "Oh! And before I forget..."

            Derek took the two hundreds and handed Stiles back $130 in change. Stiles tried to protest, but Derek shook his head. "Friends and family discount," he lied. "Not for free, not not paid for. We're even."

            Stiles, like him, wasn't going to be one to negotiate when he was being handed more money than intended. "Okay," the younger man breathed, pocketing the change.

            Derek zipped the garment bag back up, tucking the photo inside just in case. "You can come over at six. I'll make us dinner and we can get ready before the trick-or-treaters arrive."

            "Sounds like a plan. I'll see you then."

            "Yep," Derek replied, and Stiles hesitated before pulling him into a hug.

            "BF for always." Stiles whispered in his ear.

            "Boyfriend or best friend?" Derek teased as they broke the hug. Rather than answering, Stiles winked and skipped out the door.

*

            In a sort of weird parallel to his life, at six on the dot, a knock echoed from his door, and Derek, slightly hurried because dinner wasn't ready yet, opened the door to see Stiles' wide grin.

            "Hey," they greeted simultaneously, and Stiles let himself in, dropping his costume off on the couch (gently, of course) before following Derek into the kitchen.

            They ate dinner without much preamble as soon as it was finished. Kids usually started arriving around 7:30, so Derek wanted them both dressed and fed by then.

            Derek told Stiles he would help him get ready first. It was a slow torture, feeling Stiles' warm breath puff across his lips as he carefully drew the lines mocking wolf claws over Stiles' eye, and he swore he saw Stiles smirk when he had to readjust his sitting position. Derek was only barely able to restrain himself from kissing the younger man.

            While Stiles moved into Derek's bedroom to change, Derek decided to "put on his prosthetics" and disappeared into the bathroom. He exited after a long enough amount of time and almost had a heart attack at the sight of Stiles, fully costumed, aiming the fake crossbow gun at his face, grinning like the little shit he was.

            Once his heart settled down, he lisped around his fangs, "Please don't do that to any of the children."

            Stiles set the crossbow aside and instead reached out to touch Derek's face. Derek hesitated, Stiles' fingers centimeters away, before he pressed forward into his warm caress. Stiles felt the bumpy bridge of his nose, his sideburns, and even the tips of his fangs. He stared unflinchingly into Derek's bright blue eyes.

            "Wow, this really does look natural on you," Stiles breathed in awe.

            Derek pushed back the urge to cry. Even though this was what he did every Halloween, always had since he was a child, and the kids never thought anything other than it being a great costume, it was touching to hear such soothing words come from someone he liked. Someone he _really_ liked. Stiles wasn't scared. Stiles accepted him. Even though Stiles didn't know this was the real him, Derek guessed he suspected something. But he wouldn't bring that up tonight, that was a discussion for a later date.

            Derek pretended to bite at Stiles' thumb when his fingers went back near his fangs.

            Stiles looked amazing in his costume. He pushed the hood up so that his face was shrouded in shadow, darkened even more by the black paint surrounding his eyes. The pants fit him quite nicely. They were made to be slightly loose, but they clung well enough to look amazing. Stiles had paired them with some black combat boots. His fingerless gloves just emphasized how long his fingers were. Derek had done a really great job and Stiles pulled it off so well.

            Too bad Stiles was probably going to use his hot look to pick up someone to bring home at his last college Halloween party. Right, there was that.

            When kids started arriving, Derek was surprised to see Stiles stick around to help pass out candy. Sure, the party probably didn't start until the late evening, but didn't he want to do some pre-partying or something? Didn't college students do that?

            Eight o'clock passed, and then nine o'clock, and by quarter after, most of the kids had already come and gone, but Stiles was still there.

            "You don't have to wait around with me for every last kid," Derek promised. "Head to your party, I know you were really excited about it. I don't want to keep you."

            Stiles stared at him like he was an idiot, and Derek felt like he'd missed a major plot point in his own life. "There are tons of parties," Stiles finally said. "But there's only one Halloween a year." He took Derek's hand in his and intertwined their fingers. "And I wanted to spend it with you. That cool?"

            _Oh_. _Oh, okay_. So, 'BF' meant boyfriend. Derek could do this. He took a deep breath and squeezed Stiles' hand, and resisted the urge to kiss him. It would be too painful with the fangs. Maybe later, since apparently they had all night. And presumably more after that. Derek could get on board with that. He was so on board. "Yep."

 

**Author's Note:**

> there's more of this madness on my tumblr at redhoodedwolf


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